Avalon Ballroom Niagara Fallsview Casino Niagara Falls, Ontario May 28, 2005

A 2 nighter in Niagara Falls? That’s a no brainer if there ever was one. Buckle up kids, this is a long one…. Go here for the set list or settle in for the long read…

After squeezing in a half day at work, it was time to make my way north. Three flights and 3+ hours of driving later, I was finally in Canada.

I should’ve taken this exchange with the patrol type lady person as a bad omen:

HER: Where are you going?
ME: Niagara Falls
HER: Why?
ME: Cheap Trick!
HER: *blank stare*
ME: Heh, heh…
HER: *colder stare*
ME: Ummm… Vacation…?

Shortly after that *friendly* interaction, I was in Canada. And lost.

I swear to GOD I’m better at directions than this!!! Argh!

I mean, really. How in the hell does one NOT find the biggest effin’ tourist trap in Canada?!!?

Poor Junko was waiting for me in the hotel lobby. I like to think that I’d wait up that late for a friend, but I kinda doubt it. ;)

Off to our room – which was pretty dang nice for the price. It had the biggest closet I’ve ever seen in a hotel room! Good lord!

After the traditional gift exchange (she got me a supercool checkerboard coffee cup set for my birthday) it wasn’t long before I was zonked.

Alert the media – little miss morning person didn’t wake up until 10 AM! I swear – I couldn’t tell you the last time I was in bed that late. LOL!

Shortly after a Starbucks run, the phone rang. It was Adam B., begging to use our room as his own personal storage locker. ;) Thank god for the huge closet!

Seriously though, it was nice to see him again and to get a chance to meet his wife, Stacey. They’d had a very pleasant flight in - not! After catching up a bit, they took a stroll around the tourist trap – er – district while Junko and I headed to the venue to pick up our tickets.

As luck would have it, our favorite lead singer in the whole wide world strolled up while we were there. He had his son in tow and was kind enough to stop and chat for a few moments, giving us the run down of the venue (he thought it was beautiful) and pose for some pictures.

Back at the other end of the casino we ran into the one and only Carolina Man. Jimmy joined us for lunch at The Famous.

No, I didn’t leave out a word, that’s what that joint is called. What’s it famous for? I really couldn't tell ya. Perhaps it's famous for charging $12 pancakes? Neat-o! :P (Even after converting to US $ it's still a rip off :P)

We hoofed it back to the hotel to allow the Mr. & Mrs. Adam to pick up their bags – then we headed back to try to hear sound check.

No such luck there, but we did get to see the guys on their way in and/or out. Rick raced in but Junko and I stopped him for a hug. LOL Plus, Tom gave me a huge thrill when he greeted me by name. Awwwww!

After a quick run back to the hotel, we hopped the shuttle back to the casino in time for the big show.

There were lots of fans on hand – many of whom I met for the first time. Darran and his family (all the way from Wales!), Roger and Mandy (the London contingent), Shawna, Andrea & her hubby, Elaine and Mark (our seats were next to each other waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay over on Tom’s side), Dawn, Deanna, Stacey, Greg, Pat,Mr & Mrs. ZG, Lilli, Grace, her sister (whose name escapes me – sorry!), Cici, Cookielady, two gents whom I met at TF3 (argh!!! names?! WTF? why am I so terrible at remembering names?!?!) and of course Mr. Kim G. Great to see so many of the CT faithful on hand. :) (If I've forgotten anyone - a thousand pardons. I've slept since that night!)

Inside the theatre, we could see that Robin was right. It’s a beautiful place – with red velvet seats, a good sized stage, 2 bars in the back and a small balcony. I think it seats about 1200. Tonight’s show was sold out, for all intents and purposes. Nice to see CT in such a posh place. :)

Drink service was available in the lobby and at your seat (pre-show). Roger, Mandy and I had a laugh when we were informed that beer would not be served in a bottle (wouldn’t wanna give the audience projectiles, of course). This rationale rang a little false when it came in a glass instead. WTF?!

Anyway – thanks for the beer, Roger! :D

Soon it was time to take our seats for the show!

THE SHOW

OPENER

There wasn’t one.

Woo hoo!

FASHION REPORT

SET LIST

RN Speaks

"Just in case you’re wondering, we’re NOT Howie Mandel. "

(Lisa thinks, "Thank you, Jesus.")

In addition to fans from Leeds, Buffalo, Yokohama and Texas, Rick gave some special shout outs…

In no particular order – Darran, Jocelyn, Amy and Rick got a mention. He pointed them out and noted their crappy seats. LOL! He also pointed out Adam and Stacey, then went on and on about their sex life and pondering if they were gonna "do it" tonight. Bwahahahahahahaha!

He also pointed out Andy Babiuk in the crowd who wrote Beatles Gear. On the spot, Rick suggested that he ought to work on a CT Gear book. Tom remarked that it would only be a pamphlet. Eventually Rick had talked them down to one piece of paper. Doh!

I forget exactly what it was but he had a quip for the person holding up a sign that said, "WE ARE NOT WORTH IT!" WTF?! Did he mean "we’re not worthy?!"

He showed off his new shirt - adding a quip about knowing where he is now...

There was a slew of "crossing the border" jokes, none of which I recall. Oops! Rick also indulged in one of his favorite bad joke habits – the dreaded Michael Jackson riffs. I love Rick but I hate those jokes, so I don’t bother to remember then. :P

Somebody backstage thought dry ice was a good idea but Rick didn’t. LOL! "Where’s that smoke coming from?! It must be the mist coming off the falls!"

Speaking of, before heading off stage for the last time he yelled, "See you at the Falls!"

RZ Speaks

Instead of the usual "Thanks for coming out to see Cheap Trick – we’ll see you next year" schpeal, Robin said he’d see us "down the road ‘a piece."

WTF?!

MISC. MUSINGS

The show was another high energy effort from our boys. It’s always such a pleasure to see smiles all around.

Rick was just as frustrated as we were with the "stay in your seat" rule. For the life of me, I’ll never understand that.

Nor will I understand those seats, front and center going to waste – but that’s exactly what happened. I was going crazy seeing such good seats empty all night. I claimed one for my own for the encores. Got a "What the hell" look from Rick when he noticed me in a different spot. LOL!

Anyway – there was a lot of goofing around on stage tonight. Gotta love that. The impromptu jam of the weekend was a Jeff Beck ditty (sorry – I’m not astute enough to know which one) with Rick and BEC. I love it when they do that! Afterwards, Rick was self deprecating as always. "I haven’t played that one in awhile!"

Another moment of self deprecation, "My room would be romantic if I wasn’t in it!"

LMAO!

Rick and Robin seemed to have a lot of fun flirting with the many ladies on hand. Several of them made their way to the stage in an attempt to get picks and/or autographs.

POST SHOW JUNK

A small group of us decided to head for the Hard Rock Café for drinks, food and the obligatory CT memorabilia search. Fortunately the place wasn’t crowded and they could accommodate the dozen or so on hand. We even had our own room.

I got the stupidest, most obvious observation award with my "Hey this must be the Elvis room" comment. This wouldn’t’ve been so bad, if I hadn’t already been sitting in the room for 20 minutes. ;)

P.S. Junko’s order of ribs could rival the brontosaurus ribs from "The Flintstones." LOL! Also – The spinach flat bread sucks and the HRC in NF, Ontario doesn’t feel the need to carry one brand of Canadian whiskey.

The company more than made up for the mediocre food and drinks. ;)

Ahhh! Back to the hotel – where Junko and I noted the "Do Not Disturb" sign on Adam and Stacey’s door. We couldn’t help but remember all the crap those two got from Rick earlier that night! Bwahahahhaha!

Night, night! More on night two soon!

Peace,
Lisa J.
"I prefer to listen to Cheap Trick."
-Homer J. Simpson

© Lisa Jebsen, 2005